Uncertainty eases over Castro's health

Communist officials have rallied hundreds in outdoor meetings to publicly declare their support for ailing leader Fidel Castro to reassure Cubans’ worried about their long-ruling leader.

Several hundred people waving small red, white and blue Cuban flags sang the national anthem in the plaza of a working class neighbourhood just before nightfall yesterday as local Communist officials whipped up patriotic fervour through exhortations from a sound stage on an articulated truck.

Meanwhile, Castro’s ally and friend Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez expressed confidence in the Cuban leader’s recovery, calling him “the father of this continent’s revolutionaries”.

“I have very, very much faith that Fidel will fully recover from his ailment, from the operation they had to perform on him,” Chavez said last night in Venezuela, referring to Castro’s recent intestinal surgery.

Nevertheless, Chavez said that Castro told him at last month’s Mercosur summit in Argentina, before he became ill, that Cuba “will continue on his path” when he dies. “There’s a team, a revolution, a people prepared for whatever comes,” Chavez said, quoting Castro.

At the Havana neighbourhood rally, men, women and even the smallest children chanted: “Long live Fidel! Long live Raul!” in support of Castro and his brother Raul, to whom he has temporarily ceded power.

“We are here for the life of our commandant,” said Olga Rosada, who appeared to be in her late 60s.

Referring to a generalised belief that the US government or Cuban exiles want to take advantage of Castro’s current health problem to invade, Rosada said Cubans “don’t fear anyone or anything. And if anyone wants to come here, let them come. They are going to leave crushed!”

“We are praying for the life of our commander in chief because we love him,” said neighbourhood resident Alejandrina Legran. “He’s the prince of our people. We owe him our respect and obedience.”

Cubans interviewed in recent days seem increasingly confident that Castro will be back on his feet in a few weeks, with some speculating that the man who has governed them for 47 years may make an appearance on Sunday, his 80th birthday.

“He is invulnerable, and will get better,” said Lazaro Martinez, a 65-year-old flower seller. “We are anxious to see him, but we also understand the situation he is in.”

Castro has not been seen publicly since July 26, when he gave two speeches in eastern Cuba to celebrate the island’s Revolution Day. Five days later, his secretary went on state television to announce that the leader had undergone surgery for intestinal bleeding and was temporarily handing over power to his younger brother, the defence minister.

Statements in recent days – such as Vice President Carlos Lage’s remark that Castro himself has said he will be back at work “in a few weeks” – seem to have calmed uncertainty and speculation among Cubans that their leader was on his deathbed, or maybe even in his grave. Still, details on his specific condition or what surgical procedure Castro underwent have yet to be released.

Many Cubans say they have no reason to doubt the statements from officials that Castro will return.

“We trust in our leaders,” Aleida Guevara, the daughter of Latin American revolutionary fighter Ernesto “Che” Guevara, said in a live internet forum discussion about her father organised by the Cuban government.

“The Cuban people are calm, though they continue to be concerned about the health of El Commandant,” said Guevara, who lives in Havana.

Cuba’s Communist Youth newspaper yesterday published letters to Castro from children and teenagers across the country.

“We care about you so much, and since the moment of this sad news haven’t stopped thinking about you,” wrote Rina Forment, a 10-year-old in the eastern city of Santiago.

Big celebrations for Castro’s birthday were postponed until December 2, the 50th anniversary of Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed Forces. His supporters were still expected to honour the day, likely through the state-run media, whether he is able to make an appearance or not.

Lage, in Bogota for the inauguration of Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, said on Monday that Castro “continues to be coming along favourably and we are sure that he will recover”.

Cuba’s ambassador to Bolivia also said Castro was recovering quickly.

“His health is improving,” Rafael Dausa said in Sucre, Bolivia. “He’s recovering. He’ll be back sooner rather than later. You’re going to see more Fidel for a while.”

But some Cubans tempered their optimism.

Pilar Lopez, 68, said she didn’t think officials were lying but that Castro could be struggling more than is being acknowledged.

“I’m worried that it could be worse than we think,” she said. “It must have been a difficult operation, and he is human, after all.”

“We just don’t really know,” said Lopez, who receives welfare from the Cuban state for health problems. “But none of us want him to go yet.”